HCAP WEEKLY September 21, 2026

STEM Students Make An Exciting Visit to Bishop Museum

This weekend was special for the Hā Initiative: Creative STEM After-School Program. Students attended their first field trip of the school year to the Bishop Museum. Students from all STEM classrooms came together bright and early on Saturday morning. The bus ride was filled with excitement and anticipation!

While at the museum, students were able to participate in hands-on activities that encouraged them to explore, experiment, and learn through play. The interactive exhibits allowed students to use their creativity and problem-solving skills while discovering how different things work.

Students also explored the museum’s natural history exhibits, where they encountered an incredible variety of animals and learned more about the unique plants and creatures found throughout Hawaiʻi and the Pacific. One of the most exciting sights was the enormous whale displayed hanging from the ceiling at the Hawaiian Hall exhibit. Looking up at such a massive animal gave students a new perspective on the size and importance of marine life in Hawaiʻi. The three-story exhibit is filled with historical Hawaiian artifacts and displays that help tell the story of Hawaiʻi and its people. Students saw traditional Hawaiian tools, canoes, clothing, weapons, cultural objects, and other artifacts while learning about how Native Hawaiians lived, traveled, worked, and used the natural resources around them. Students were able to see examples of the creativity, knowledge, engineering, and resourcefulness that have been part of Hawaiian culture for generations.

The Hā Initiative students continued their adventure at the Aloha Bricks exhibition, created in partnership with the Hawaii LEGO® Users Group (HILUG) and middle school students from across the state. STEM students were greeted by an incredible collection of LEGO masterpieces. The exhibit featured detailed creations inspired by Hawaiʻi. Seeing familiar places from Hawaiʻi recreated with LEGO bricks gave students a chance to look at their own surroundings in a completely different way. They could see how buildings, airplanes, hotels, and other structures can be broken down into individual parts and then carefully designed and rebuilt. This concept connected directly to the engineering and design skills applied regularly in STEM classrooms.

The students’ favorite part of the exhibition was the LEGO building room, where they were surrounded by millions of LEGO pieces and given the freedom to create whatever their imaginations could conjure.

The students had a wonderful time and were able to see how science, technology, engineering, creativity, culture, and history all came together. They are all eager for the upcoming field trip in October. 

Click here to learn more about Hā Initiative.

Single Mother Achieves Successful Career Pivot Through ECS

Cresalyn is a single mother of two children who was seeking to pursue a career in the medical field. She was already employed as a full-time Sales Associate but wanted to change her career path in order to provide a better life for her children. Cresalyn aspired to pursue a career in healthcare because she is passionate about helping others in need and wanted to have a job that she felt was more meaningful to her community.

Cresalyn was referred to HCAP’s Nā Lima Hana Employment Core Services (ECS) program by Professional Healthcare Educators (PHE) and was eager to begin the intake process with the Central District Service Center staff. After getting to know Cresalyn, she shared that she sought tuition assistance to improve her and her family’s lives, as she did not have the extra funds to put toward her program costs after paying for her monthly necessities. Cresalyn successfully completed Job Readiness Training and began her program at PHE despite experiencing a family emergency. While juggling her personal life and adjusting to her new work-school-life balance, Cresalyn persevered and successfully completed her program. She is now a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA).

The Central District Service Center continues to support Cresalyn as she works toward meeting her employment core milestones and begins her new journey toward self-sufficiency.

Click here to learn more about Nā Lima Hana.

The Growing Ohana Extends Their Kōkua to Kumuhonua Following Recent Storms

Following the recent storms, HCAP’s Kumuhonua Emergency Shelter staff fostered a partnership with The Growing Ohana who generously extended a helping hand in donating hygiene products to the shelter. While it was difficult for Kumuhonua participants to go out during harsh weather conditions, The Growing Ohana played a valuable role in helping them get essential items during this time. Their Founder and Executive Director, Domonica Glenn, visited Kumuhonua to personally deliver the essential goods. Donation bags included hand sanitizers, lotion, and body washes, with 50 bags being donated and offered to every participant at the shelter.

The Growing Ohana is an organization dedicated to providing resources and wellness services to the community and those who need extra support. They aim to “offer life skills training to parents and the community to better prepare them for societal participation,” and additionally, one of its focuses is to help the homeless community. HCAP looks forward to working with its new friends at The Growing Ohana to provide more beneficial services to the community and Kumuhonua participants.

Click here to learn more about Kumuhonua.